Thursday, January 6

This is my dog Daisy. Guilty as sin. She knows she’s been bad. She knows it upsets me.

She knows she’ll do it again.

For whatever reason, Daisy has begun throwing tantrums whenever we leave the house, and we will come home to find some sort of mess – ripped up toys, chewed up papers, trash from the bathroom in the bedroom, etc. You might say, “Becky, you have two dogs, so how do you know that it was Daisy?”

Have you seen the picture? Look at the ears. Look at the slumped body. LOOK AT THE TONGUE LICKING HER GUILTY LIPS.

Sigh.

And every time she does this, we go through the same process. Bruce and I both scold her and then give her the silent treatment (so she can think about it, of course). She sits on the loveseat across from us with that guilty, pathetic demeanor for as long as it takes…. Until we call her to us to “make up.” We explain to her that it’s for her own good that she not participate in such behavior, and we remind her that it upsets us. Then we tell her to be “Mom’s good dog” and that “it’s ok,” and she gives us kisses because she knows all is well. Until maybe the next time we leave the house….

And isn’t that how we are with God sometimes? We sin. We know we shouldn’t. We know it’s bad. We know it will upset Him. But we sin anyway. We can’t help ourselves. And there we sit with our ears back and our tails tucked and our guilty lips. And then God calls us to Him - in spite of ourselves - so that we can confess that we’ve been bad, so that He can remind us that He only wants the best for us and that it upsets Him when we don't listen. And then He tells us we are His precious children and showers us with kisses of forgiveness, and we know all is well.

Tuesday, January 4

I am officially back from my blogcation. I guess technically I could have been back sooner, but a bout with a nasty stomach bug thwarted those efforts for a few more days. But I am here now.

HAPPY NEW YEAR, FRIENDS! (Is it too late to say that? How long before we can’t say it anymore?) How are we doing with the resolutions thus far? I like to think that I am “easing into” mine, so it’s not all in-my-face, cold turkey changes I cannot live up to. Though really, I haven’t made any mind-blowing resolutions – they’re more like realizations of things that need change.

For example:

2011 will be the year of even better time management for me. I’m not bad about managing my time, though up until now, I have allowed myself to get tossed about between whatever my lack-of-schedule requires of me, and I end up exhausted, annoyed and not satisfied because by the time I got a chance to do things I want/need to do, I don’t want to do them anymore. So this year, I am setting aside time each night/week to do certain things that I want to do: like read my Bible, create art, exercise (not so much a “want” as it is a “need”), prepare healthy meals, etc. It’s almost like I am calling meetings with myself.

2011 will be the year that I “eat His word.” I don’t mean “do devotions” in the sense that I will read a book that references a few Bible passages. I mean reading the Bible and STUDYING it, pondering on it so that I can share it. I am also hoping to memorize one passage a week. This week’s is Jeremiah 15:16 – that’s where “eat His word” comes from…

2011 will be the year that I get off my butt. I was recently chatting with a friend of mine, and we were both divulging our extravagant dislike for the current state of our bodies. And we went through all the excuses of why we look this way – lack of time, age, sedentary jobs, family doesn’t care what we look like, never home, etc. Blah, blah, blah… There’s always a reason when you’re looking for one. Ultimately, we decided our problem was that we like food, and we don’t move. So, it’s time to start moving. She has glorious dreams of getting back into running. I’m starting much smaller – walking within my fat burning heartbeat zone (which will basically be at a snail’s pace initially) and working my way up. I will also be making changes to my diet, of course, but I know that the fact that I do not exercise is the bulk of my problem.

2001 will be the year I get serious about my art. I have decided that it’s time for me to move away from being “crafty” to being an actual mixed-media artist. It’s what I want to be when I grow up. (Tee hee!) Obviously TIME is a big part of this (refer to my first bullet point) – practice makes perfect, after all. I also need to start taking more risks, putting myself out there. And that scares the begeezus out of me. But my confidence won’t build unless I get my delicate ego banged-up a bit. So, I’ll be learning new techniques and showing them to folks. Be prepared to see some photos of my artwork now and then. I also signed up for The Sketchbook Challenge, which will get my name and work out there to other artists. I would LOVE to have some of my stuff for sale in a little shop somewhere.…

What about all of you? Any resolutions for the new year? I’d love to hear about them…

Give thanks for what you are now, and keep fighting for what you want to be tomorrow. ~Fernanda Miramontes-Landeros

All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by his great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation. ~I Peter 1:3

Me

My Love

My Sweet Daisy

My Silly Dixie

My Avant-Garde

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